Prescription-filing cabinet and the like



Dec. 25, 1928. I

C. M. ANDERSON PRESCRIPTION FILING CABINET AND THE LIKE Filed Aug. 2,1927 FIG; 2.

FIG. I.

IN V EN TOR.

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Patented Dec. 223, lQZtB.

, teasers rarest f.FFiCE.

CLARENCE M. annnnsou, or oxen mourn CITY, OKLAHOMA.

PRESCRIPTION-FILING CABINET AND THE LIKE.

Application filed Augiist Z, 1927. Serial No. 210,158.

My invention relates to filing cabinet and perforator tor prescriptions,and the like.

The object of my invention is to produce a device or the characterdescribed which will be new, novel, efficient, and of utility; whichwill be compact, substantial, cheap and durable; which will provide aprivate filing cabinet which can be kept away from the public and whichwill be easilyaccessible to the pharn'iacist, drugg t, or operator andwhich will occupy little space and can be easily kept on a counter,desk, or table.

lVith these and other objects in view my invention consists in theconstruction, nove features, and combination of parts hcrein after morefully described, illustrated in he accompanying one-sheet drawing; andpointed out in the claims hereto appended; it being understood thatvarious changes in the form, proportion, size, shape, weight and minordetails of construction, within the scope of my invention maybe'resorted to without departing from the spirit or principle oi theinvention or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof.

lhe novel features, invention and other 1 objects will be more fullyshown in the specilication, claims, and accompanying one-sheet drawing,of which,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the cabinet open and empty; Fig. 2 isa perspective view of the pertorator for the prescriptions;

Fig. 3 is a. perspective view of the open filing cabinet showing in themiddleportion a number of prescriptionsheld up by the holding or liftingarm. r I Like characters of reference designate like parts in allthefigures.

. The method of handling the prescriptions, which of necessity are onfile for long periods of time it not practically perpetually has beenunsatisfactory. This is largely by reason of the fact that they are madeby various physicians throughoutthe country on ditierent size sheets oipaper and sometimes are folded and sometimes not andare handled byvarious persons before they reach the druggist for filing and filling.Ottentin'ies a prescription is desired to be filled immedi ately onaccount of the urgency for the no cessity of it; practically no way ofindexing or consecutively numbering is applicable tor tiling suchprescriptions. lily invention re-,

lieves all of the objectionsto sucha careless and SllPShOtl manner ofhandling, besides making it possible to easily handlethein and easy toget hold of any given number of prescriptions desired; it also makes itpossible to tile many more prescriptions in the same size filing cabinetthan is permitted by any other method.

Referring to the drawing wherein for the sake of illustration is shown apreferred embodiment of the invention, I provide a metallie, or othersuitable material, filing cabinet adapted to be'placed upon a' table,counter, or desk 1 the cabinet has preferably an extended beveled base 3at the bottom oft-he filing cabinet 2 and can be when desired securelyfastened to the table or other fixture as shown at Saidliling cabinethas a sidefi, a back G, a second side 7, atop 8, a door 9, and an insidebottom 10. These are all preferably of metal, but may be made of othersuitable material. In the base 10 is provided a plurality of struck-uptongues 14 adapted to receive and hold the bent wire base 13 of tilingrod 11 having a sharp point at its upwardly ex i tending tree end 12.This filing rod ispret- ,erably 0t coppered spring steel, the springdownwardly thereon of a plurality oi prescriptions on file. The sharppoint 12 is prelierably a sufiicient distance from the top of the insideof the filing cabinet to permit the insertion of thehands of theonerator and the taking therefrom and placing therein of a large numberof prescriptions when it is desired to. be done. The door 9 ispreferably hung on cleat hinges 15 at the bottom and 16 near the topmounted on rod 17 extending from the base 10 to the top 8 which isanchored to said base and top respectively. Said door has near its outerclosing edge a lock 21 adapted to be locked securely to said side-wall 5and to be unlockedatanytime the operator desires to use the same. Saidrod 17 has floatably anchored thereon preferably a steel holding orlifting arm 18 with a rubber tip 19 near its outer end ;'said arm isadapted to be normally kept inside of the wall Tand also to be partiallyturned away i'romsaid wall in a position adjacent said filingrod ll bestshown at 20. This arm is adapted: to hold up prescriptions away from theother prescriptions filed therebelow as shown at32 and to keep them in agiven positionuntil the prescription 81 is read, or copied, or takenout, as the case may be; after which time the prescriptions so li 'tedand held can be permitted to descend on rod 11 after the withdrawing ofarm 18 thereunder. When a prescription is presented to the pharmacist,or druggist, or operator which has not theretofore been filed in thisfiling cabinet it is first perforated. For this purpose I provide aperforator composed of an under surface plate preferably adapted to beinstalled on the top of said cabinet, said under surface plate having anupstanding stud or button 28 at its front center. A perforating plate 25bent forwardly under surface plate at their inside juncture atedgeportion oil so as to create a resilience for said perforating plate,said perforating plate is preferably triangular and forn'is a tongue atits age); 26. A. disc 29 is fastened adjacent said apes: 29, and hasconnected thereto a hollow cutting member-'30 being adapted to perforatewith its cutting point each prescription when said prescription ispressed down on stud or button 28 after having been inserted betweenunder plate 22 and perforating plate 25 and against upstanding side edge2a and against inside edge portion 28. When disc 29 is presseddownwardly and the prescription is perforated the resilience betweensaid under plate 22 and said perforating plate 25 formed by the bend atthe inside edge portion 23 causes said perforating plate 25 to againresume its normal position for the further inserting of prescriptionstherein for perforation. Said cutting member 27 is placed on saidpertorator at a point equally distant from the top of the prescriptionas the filing rod distant from the back 6 of the filing cabinet. lVhenthe prescription is placed in the said perforator as indicated and thedisk on 29 on cutting member 30 is pressed down on upstanding stud 28 aclean cut perforation is cut in the prescription and it is then ready tobe threadedover said filing rod 11. It will be seen that the top andleft side edges of the prescription may be the same as the top and leftside edges of the other prescriptions whether the prescription so filedis as large as the general average of prescriptions on file or not. Theperfora tion being clean cut and taking out a small portion of the paperwithout permitting the edges from being wrinkled and bent upwardly anddownwardly permits the prescriptions.

to be lowered and raised on the file rod much more easily andpermits ofthe filing of a greater number of prescriptions in a given space thanwould be possible if the prescriptions were not perforated uniformly andin a clean cut manner, and permits the prescriptlons to be more ea silyremoved from the file. The first prescriptions filed would be at thebottom and they would be g 'adually built up consecutivelytherefrom thelast and highest number being at the top. The number of the prescriptionto be refilled would be handed to the pharmacist, or druggist, oroperator and the number on the file rod would be sought and when found.the )rescriptions thereabove would be lifted and the holding or liftingarm partially turned to be placed thereunder thereby holding it awayfrom the prescription desired. When the operator is through with theprescription the arm would then be withdrawn and placed in a normalposition along the inside of wall 7 and the prescriptions formerly heldthcreabovc would be lowered on the filing rod in regular order withouttaking any of the prescriptions off of the filing rod. 7

Having described my invention what is claimed and desired to be securedby Letters Patent, is:

l. A cabinet of the character described, comprising an upright metalliccase having walls, top, bottom; and a door, said door be ing adapted tobe locked; said bottom being adapted to be fastened to a base, andhaving on its inside a plurality of upstanding tongues; a filing rodhaving its lower end bent so as to form a base and to be removably heldin said tongues, its upper free end being pointed and adapted to be usedthrough perforations in prescriptions, and the like; a rod anchored attop and bottom adjacent one front edge of said cabinet and being adaptedto hinge said door thereon, a slidable arm being adapted for movementand for positioningon said anchored rod for separating, holding andraising one portion of said prescriptions from the other portion; incombination with a suitable cutting perforator adapted to perforatepapers for filing in said cabinet so as to make'their filingthereinuniform; said filing rod and the prescription and the like placedtherein being adapted to be removed from said cabinet and retired to asuit able container.

2. A filing cabinet of the character described, comprising four wallsincluding a door adapted to be looked; a top and bottom; a rod anchoredto said top andbott-om near one front corner adapted to pivotthe hingesof said door near its top and bottom; a slidable arm having rubberbutton on its outer end being slidably anchored on said anchored rod; aspring-steel filing rod bent at its bot tom to form a base, said basebeing adapted to be held by tongues in the inside ofsaid bot tom; theupper end of said rod being pointed; said filing rod being adapted forreceiving and. holding said prescriptions thereon, in combination with asuitable perforator being adapted to be attached to the top of saidcabinet, and adapted to perforate prescriptions and the like foruniformly filing in said cabinet.

CLARENCE M. ANDERSON.

